If it weren’t for my friends on Facebook, I wouldn’t have known that vegan bag designers Matt&Nat was having a sample sale from Nov.15th to the 17th, nor would I have known that luxury good retailer m0851 were having their own sample sale this weekend.

For many 20-something to 30-something web users, Facebook has become the ubiquitous place to “hang out” online. With an active online membership of over 42 million users (thanks Wiki!), it is an undeniable market for fashion designers to spread their wings.

Fashion designers are taking advantage of the Facebook platform, initiating groups for their brands and creating events in ways that traditional push emails, flyers, and print ads can’t fulfill. The Montreal Fashion group boasts a growing membership of around 50 members per day to their 7300 members. Within these groups, users can post images, videos, links, and events, interact with one another on the group’s discussion boards and initiate contacts. Facebook’s main appeal is that everyone uses their real names, producing a sense of familiarity between the consumer and the brand’s owner or representative. Discounts can be given to group members during private special events, creating exclusivity, and you know how shoppers love feeling special.

This truly a cost effective practice for fashion designers. Facebook is free to join, or they can buy and create a sponsored page like Victoria’s Secret Pink group, their outreach is as wide as the network they’re in, friends can refer other friends to the group, and so on. Consumers can access the brand’s information on their own time and it doesn’t cost the designers or the consumers a dime. Now how brilliant is that? Facebook’s got it goin’ on.